Pakistan and the United States postponed top-level military consultations at the last moment a few days ago amidst widespread unrest arising from an anti-Islam film posted on the Internet, General Martin Dempsey, chairman US Joint Chiefs Staff said. Instead, the highest-ranked American uniformed officer extended his unpublicized visit to neighboring Afghanistan to have closer assessment of the situation there.
“I was originally planned to go to Pakistan to meet with (Army Chief) General (Ashfaq Parvez) Kayani, and because of some of the issues related to that film, he and I discussed postponing that visit — mostly so that I would give him the time to deal with the issues he was dealing with internally,” Dempsey disclosed at a Pentagon briefing. On this particular trip, the general said, he was “supposed to go to Pakistan first. And I wanted that to be a very private visit with General Kayani. I only changed the trip right at the end.”
Dempsey observed in response to a question that he has “always believed that the outcome in Afghanistan will clearly have — have to be — include some resolution of the groups that operate out of western Pakistan.” “And my purpose in going to visit General Kayani was to get his insights and his intentions in that regard,” he explained. Contrastingly with his predecessor Admiral Mike Mullen, Dempsey keeps his visits under wraps, away from media spotlight.
If romney wins, it will be a very different relationship with pakistan. I dont think our ISI will be thumbing into their eyes on Afridi and at the same time begging for money and arms
Comments are closed.